With the explosion of the Internet and social media, user generated content is being constantly created. Hundreds of millions of people post information online every day. This continuous posting has created an enormous knowledge base of information and opinions readily accessible to the public. The information obtained via market research and/or focus groups, which can cost thousands of dollars, can now be gathered via social media and online forums at a fraction of the cost. Individuals are regularly posting their opinions, advice, reviews, and knowledge online to share with the masses. However, managing and efficiently utilizing this enormous amount of information can be difficult and inefficient.
Particular industries and/or large corporations would benefit from proper analysis of this sea of information. However, it is unorganized and hard to sort. One method of information retrieval is through the use of keyword searches. Using keywords, interested parties can search through the unorganized information and locate information relevant to their interests. However, it can be difficult to identify the perfect keywords to search or base a search on. Moreover, choosing the wrong keywords can lead to returning too much information to analyze, returning too little information to analyze, or returning unrelated information.